International Day against Child Labour
SHILLONG: At an age when innocence reigns supreme, many children are forced to mature beyond their stature to sustain themselves and their families.
It is not hard to trace such youngsters in the streets of Shillong and across the State and country.
These children belong to the underprivileged section of the society and are forced to migrate from the villages only to struggle with one petty job or the other in search of a living.
On the occasion of International Day against Child Labour, two young girls, Ibahunlang and Mary (names changed), narrated their story on how circumstances compelled them to work as domestic helps in the city.
15-year-old Ibahunlang, who hails from Pynursla, said that she has been working as a domestic help since the age of 12.
“I lost my mother at an early age. With my eldest sister already married, I was forced to work in order to look after my two brothers as my ailing father could not pursue a regular job,” Ibahunlang said.
However, against all the odds, Ibahunlang has managed to continue her studies by joining a morning school.
Meanwhile, 14-year-old Mary said that her family has been in a difficult situation ever since the demise of her father.
“Being the eldest of five siblings (three brothers and two sisters) I was compelled to leave home in search of a job to support my family,” said Mary who hails from Nongstoin.
However, unlike Ibahunlang, Mary has not been fortunate enough to make it to a school.
“It makes me sad to see other children of my age go to school. What wrong have I done to not live the same life,” she asked.
Ibahunlang and Mary are not the only ones at the receiving end of circumstances. The North Eastern Regional Domestic Worker’s Movement (NERDWM) regional director Sr. Teresa Ralte said that there are around 1,500 children, who have been identified to be working as domestic helps in the city alone.
These are children of a lesser god who are helpless and voiceless, their screams lost in the wilderness of time and space, and in continued contempt of the law, which prohibits employing children below 14 years.
Sr Ralte rued the fact that the ban on child labour has been poorly implemented in the State.
“Their (children’s) work is often hidden from the public eye. They may be isolated and working far away from their family. Stories of the abuse of children in domestic work are all too common,” Sr. Ralte said.
She informed that the NERDWM has been providing skill development and vocational training to such children apart from putting them in the mainstream so as to ensure that they are not deprived of opportunities as they grow.
On the occasion of International Day against Child Labour, the children, in one voice, demanded the government to put in place legislative and policy reforms to ensure the elimination of child labour in domestic work and the provision of decent working conditions and appropriate protection to young workers who attain the legal working age.
In its recent visit here, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) had expressed displeasure over the ‘sluggish approach’ of the State Labour department in addressing child labour and child rights issues.
The child labour survey in the state will be carried out by the North Eastern Hill University (Nehu), IIM, Shillong, Martin Luther Christian University (MLCU), labour department and civil society groups.
The deadline for finalisation of the number of child labourers in Jaintia Hills is July 31, while for the whole state is August 31.